The year
is 1987, and NASA launches the last of America's deep
space probes. In a freak mishap, Ranger Three and its pilot, Captain
William "Buck" Rogers, are blown out of their trajectory into an orbit which
freezes his life support systems, and returns Big Rogers to Earth... five hundred years
later.

The
Program

OK, intrepid followers, hop back with me as we flow freely into the past, back to
the majestic year of 1979. It had been two full years since Star Wars had pretty much blown the
roof off of children's imaginations everywhere. Like the flip of a light switch,
suddenly space - for lack of a better term - was in. Action/adventure was king
at the box office, especially if it featured ray guns, spaceships, aliens,
robots, and great-big-embarrassingly-exciting kung-faux fights in gold lamé
jumpsuits. Heck, we even got James Bond into outer space with ray-guns in
Moonraker (still vastly underrated as a Bond flick, damn you
elitists!)

But let's not get ahead of ourselves...

Where were we? Ah yes: 1979. Your humble reviewer was a wee lad of eight, and
like most members of my generation completely absorbed by and obsessed with all
things Star Wars, having seen the film in theaters somewhere in the
neighborhood of 8 billion times and suffered through the Holiday Special without
too much cerebral trauma. On television, the first (and only) season of
Battlestar Galactica had come, bringing much excitement to SF fans but
destined to be only a memorable one-season footnote for genre aficionados (the
less I mention Galactica 1980, the less I have to actually
acknowledge such an abortion ever existed.) Starved for any kind of
"space-based" entertainment, March of 1979 provided something of a reprieve. One
Saturday morning, my brother and I had found out that a brand newBuck Rogers in the 25th
Century film was playing in local theaters. Energized as if we
had just shot up with a combination of Pixie Sticks and Mountain Dew, we begged
our Mom to take us to the
Cutler Ridge mall to
see this flick. We grabbed our popcorn, plopped our collective asses down in our
seats, and awaited the sci-fi greatness that was sure to emerge before
us.

The film starred Gil Gerard as the eponymous
hero, the 20th Century astronaut lost in time, thrust into a world far
removed from that which he left. He finds himself smack dab in the middle of an
interstellar war between Earth and the Draconian Empire. A Draconian ship, as
part of a diplomatic envoy on its way to Earth, discovers Buck's frozen ship
first. The absolutely stunning and metal bikini-clad Princess Ardala (Pamela
Hensley), along with General Kane (Henry Silva), decide to return Buck Rogers to
Earth was a transmitter on his ship, thus transmitting coordinates to the proper
passage through Earth's force shield. As Buck arrives on Earth, his loyalty is
questioned by the Defense Directorate, commanded by Colonel Wilma Deering (Erin
Gray) - which doesn't get any easier when they discover the transmitter on
Buck's ship. Facing execution, Deering offers
Rogers a proposal in exchange for leniency: spy
on the Draconians for Earth and find out their master plan. Buck agrees, and
discovers a massive ruse in the making: Draconian ships are posing as space
pirates in order to distract Earth's Defense Directorate from a massive
Draconian invasion. Can Buck Rogers save the day? Or is Earth doomed?

And uh... well, to be honest, my brother and I absolutely loved the movie. So sue me; I was eight. I wasn't exactly the most discriminating
customer. Furthermore, the film, while not a big hit, grossed somewhere around
the range of $12 million, making it very profitable release for MCA Universal.
Why, you ask? Because Buck Rogers in the 25th
Century was never meant to be a theatrical release; it was a two-part
pilot episode for a proposed NBC series that somehow merited a small theatrical
run, perhaps to "test the waters" for any potential interest. It seemed to have
worked: on September 20, 1979, Buck Rogers in
the 25th Century made its television debut on
NBC as a full-blown series.

Twenty-four episodes were
produced for the show's first season, which included the theatrical film as a
two-episode pilot (the televised version of the film was slightly but not
substantially different from what was released in theaters.) For awhile it was
not sure if Erin Gray was to reprise her role as Wilma Deering, so some of the
earlier episodes had Buck teaming up with other female partners. Thankfully, Ms.
Gray's return was a welcome relief to hard-up SF horndogs all over the country.

The show itself was something of a Battlestar
Galactica hangover. Produced by the always awe-inspiring Glen Larson (who
had created and produced Galactica as well as such wonderfully silly
and entertaining shows as Quincy, Get Christie Love, The
Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, Magnum PI, and Knight
Rider), Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
used many of the same props, models, and
special effects. Furthermore, the show wasn't exactly the most highbrow of
science fiction entertainment. This was "Sci-Fi" at its lightest and cheesiest,
streamlined and made accessible to all audiences by focusing on simplistic
plots, melodramatic dialogue, scenery-chewing acting, and plenty of silly action
scenes to keep the whole thing moving along at a brisk pace. The science-fiction
faithful and snooty critics alike rolled their eyes and wrote off the entire
affair. The ratings weren't too hot, either; the show returned for a
thirteen-episode second season in January of 1981, with a reduced budget and new
direction. This time, Buck and Wilma were stationed on the starship Searcher,
commanded by Admiral Asimov (Jay Garner), on a mission of discovery for
lost tribes of humans that had fled Earth centuries ago... sort of like a
reverse-Battlestar Galactica, only without Lorne Greene. They apparently
jettisoned Dr. Huer (Tim O'Connor) out of an airlock or something, because they
replaced him with Colonel Pickering from My Fair Lady (Wilfrid
Hyde-White) in the role of Dr. Goodfellow, and were joined by Hawk (Thom
Christopher), a bird-like being whose race was murdered by drunken humans on a
weekend binge.

The show actually got a little less silly in its
second season and strived to present a harder science-fiction edge, but it was
too little, too late. Buck Rogers in the 25th
Century was cancelled after the second season,
and its thirty-seven episode body of work remained a silly but nostalgic
yearning in the hearts and minds of the faithful.

Now, I won't even begin to argue that Buck Rogers in the 25th Century was a great show, but it was certainly a fun
one. For starters, Gil Gerard was perfect in the title role. I
totally bought him as a heroic figure, but he also brought a lot of warmth
and humor to the role. Gerard certainly looked the part: with his rugged
good-looks and muscular build, there's no doubt that he cut a dashing figure,
but at the same time he gave Buck Rogers a sense of humor and personality that
placed him high and above many of the bland, character-less leading men that
populated the television landscape. And... um... there was Erin Gray. Do I
really have to explain the appeal there? A former model, Ms. Gray
became the object d'omigodsosmokin'fineI'mgonnaloseit affection for young boys
and infatuated men alike. There is nothing... nothing... like a
beautiful woman in form-fitting spandex brandishing a ray gun to completely
capture the attention of geeks of any age. Even more, Ms. Gray projected
strength and confidence in her role, and she made Wilma Deering a believable and
endearing character, remaining one of the most popular sci-fi "babes" to ever
grace the medium.

And finally there was Twiki, a midget runaway from
Styx's Mr. Roboto video with the voice
of Yosemite Sam afflicted with some bizarre neurological disorder that
forced him to precede every sentence with a "beedy beedy beedy." This surely was
not Mel Blanc's most memorable contribution to the art of voice-over acting, and
Twiki's anachronisms certainly contributed to some of the eye-rolling and
groan-inducing to which Buck Rogers in the
25th Century seems to lend itself. It didn't
help matters much that the little guy walked around with a talking tambourine
around his neck from which everybody seemed to take orders. Silly? Sure.
Unnecessary? Probably. Should they have removed him from the series? Absolutely
not. Given the time and tone of series, Twiki fit right in with the proceedings
as breezily as a $20 off, no minimum, multiple-reuse coupon from Reel.com
circa 1999.

Buck Rogers in the
25th Century wasn't a perfect show. It was silly and obvious and about as
believable as Ashlee Simpson belting out a Shostakovich cantata. But it
worked. It lived and breathed and sailed by on its affable charm and
colorful vision of the future, as if reflected through
L.A.'s Bonaventure Hotel,
circa 1979.

The
DVD

Buck Rogers in
the 25th Century: The Complete Epic Seriescomes in a lovely
five double-sided DVD set, containing the following
episodes:

The
Awakening (Part 1)

The
Awakening (Part 2)

Planet
of the Slave Girls (Part 1)

Planet
of the Slave Girls (Part 2)

Vegas
In Space

Plot
To Kill A City (Part 1)

Plot
To Kill A City (Part 2)

Return
of the Fighting 69th

Unchained
Woman

Planet
of the Amazon Women

Cosmic
Whiz Kid

Escape
from Wedded Bliss

Cruise
Ship to the Stars

Space
Vampire

Happy
Birthday, Buck

A
Blast for Buck

Ardala
Returns

Twiki
is Missing

Olympiad

A
Dream of Jennifer

Space
Rockets

Buck's
Duel to the Death

Flight
of the War Witch (Part 1)

Flight
of the War Witch (Part 2)

Time
of the Hawk (Part 1)

Time
of the Hawk (Part 2)

Journey
to Oasis (Part 1)

Journey
to Oasis (Part 2)

The
Guardians

Mark
of the Saurian

The
Golden Man

The
Crystals

The
Satyr

Shgorapchx!

The
Hand of Goral

Testimony
of a Traitor

The
Dorian Secret

Video:

Buck Rogers in the
25th Century: The Complete Epic Series is presented in its original,
fullframe aspect ratio of 1.33:1. The pilot movie, while released theatrically
in a widescreen aspect ratio, was originally shot fullframe for television
broadcast, and retains that aspect ratio here. The quality of the video is
varies from episode-to-episode. That is to say, it looks like something shot for
television in 1979, although a little bit cleaner and little bit brighter. Many
of the episodes show evidence of grain, shakiness, and some minor print wear.
Others are pretty clean and sport some vibrant, enjoyable colors. Image detail
is soft and the picture looks slightly filtered in parts: check out the
"futuristic James Bond" opening credits to the pilot. Still, the many positives
outweigh the few negatives in this transfer. While not spot-on perfect, the show
looks generally pleasing to the eye. I noticed some edge-enhancement here and
there, and for some strange reason I found most of it around Twiki (!). Is
Universal trying to send us a message here? Surrounded by an edge halo, is Twiki
presented as some kind of messianic figure? Discuss.

Audio:

The audio is presented in your standard monaural Dolby
Digital 2.0 soundtrack. You have heard this type of audio review dozens of times
before, but it bears repeating here: the mix is solid and pleasing and presents
a satisfactory rendition of the original soundtrack without distraction, yet it
doesn't provide for anything aggressive, immersive, or enveloping. Dialog levels
are bright and clear without hiss, distortion, or noise. There is nothing in
terms of separation, imaging, or localization, but let's be frank: that's not
exactly what you need here. The soundtrack is fine and acceptable for what it
is.

Extras:

Save for a few trailers for other
MCA/Universal DVD product, there is absolutely nothing of interest
here. No commentaries, no retrospectives, no documentaries... not even a single
freakin' set of DVD credits! Now this is just wrong -- what Buck Rogers fan
wouldn't want to hear Gil Gerard, Erin Gray, or Glen Larson offer their thoughts
on this show? Heck, I'm sure Gary Coleman would have been a blast to listen to
while watching Cosmic Whiz Kid.

Final
Thoughts

Nostalgia is a powerful, powerful entity. It clouds
one's recollections of times past, and there isn't a doubt that nostalgia is
nudging Buck Rogers in the 25th
Century: The Complete Epic Seriesin my mind as one of the goofiest but
enjoyable sci-fi shows ever to grace the television medium. But in
reviewing this set, I sat back and watched all 37 episodes over the course of a
weekend. That's how little of a life your pathetic reviewer has, but there you
have it. Anyway, I came away from the entire affair with a sense of giddy glee
and moronic self-babbling. The show was simple, but charming. Campy, but
exciting. At times it got downright spooky and intense, but never self-important
or pretentious. And the cast was perfect: I put it to you that, except for maybe
Kirk and Spock, no television sci-fi duo was ever as memorable as Captain Buck
Rogers and Colonel Wilma Deering. Gil Gerard and Erin Gray may have looked good
together onscreen, but they also made their respective characters shine as
endearing and entertaining people. And besides, we had exotic princesses in
metal bikinis, sci-fi babes in spandex outfits, laser guns, spaceship battles,
goofy robots, and that unquantifiable late 70s/early 80s television sci-fi
feel-good vibe that was as ephemeral as vapor but as simplistically enjoyable as
a kazoo shaped like a pickle.

The DVD release looks good and sounds good, and with 37
hours of programming, you're sure to get as much Buck Rogers enjoyment as your
heart desires. But the complete and utter lack of bonus features comes as a
severe disappointment. Perhaps Universal was thinking that there wouldn't be
much of an audience for the show, and to save money decided to release the
series without muss or fuss. Unfortunately, the set carries a price tag that is
replete with both muss and fuss. Still, I can't help but recommend
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century: The Complete
Epic Series. A throwback to a time more innocent, more naive, and a
lot cheesier, I still liked the show a hell of a lot more than Star
Trek: The Next Generation. For those of you who remember the series - and
not with the fondest of memories - give the show another whirl; you'll be
surprised at how much you find yourself actually enjoying it. Warts and all.